


King of the Wasteland

by Alessa_DC



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Mutant Apocalypse (TMNT)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-03
Updated: 2017-10-03
Packaged: 2019-01-08 15:43:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12257319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alessa_DC/pseuds/Alessa_DC
Summary: Just a short one-shot about what happens to Leo after the M bomb. It's pretty raw and abstract. I wrote it on a whim. I hope you enjoy!





	King of the Wasteland

With eyes closed, memories filter through the dank in his mind; vivid, yet disjointed and non-sequential. A blue light blinds and burns his eyes, until all that is left is a haze streaking across the sky like it's melting down onto the world. A veil falls over his eyes and it's all tinted blue now. It's ironic, and yet he doesn't know why, just that it is.

In his mind, he can see silhouettes fading into the blackness. They reach for him, screaming in desperation; tears in their eyes and in his. He knows with certainty (even though he's uncertain of all) he has lost something and it left an empty scar across his insides. He doesn't remember what that was.

The only truth he knows is what he can feel with his flesh and his lips, like the frayed rope cutting into his thick neck, the sticky blood drying on his body, and the rotting flesh he eats off the floor, as an animal rightfully should. He is one after all. An animal. Tied and fed scraps of things he can't recognize or doesn't want to. When he tries to speak, his voice comes out like a hoarse gurgle without any words and it sounds nothing like him, though he's not sure what that should be.

They call him Max - the rat pack around him - and pet his head. They say things like "good boy" and pull on the ropes until they steal his breath away. The worst thing is, they give it back and then he has to acknowledge that he's still alive. They are half breeds like himself (or so he guesses), but they look at him with fear and awe and disgust. The reality is, they nourish him, so he keeps them safe. The only price is his pride, but what is that now? He decides it's an even exchange, until it no longer suits him.

That day arrives, when he can no longer contain it. He gives in to a rage, reminiscent of something or  _ someone, _ and leaves a path of bloody destruction. That day, he learns that he is strong. Crazy strong. Unlike before (he doesn't remember feeling strong before? Just fearless.) He rises. Calls himself Maximus, because he's going to take all the power  _ away _ from his keepers. And damn them if they think they're going to give him a name that he doesn't own.

He decides that he will be no one's pet, but they will all be  _ his.  _ Whatever is left of the world bows at his feet and trembles in his shadow. Maximus relishes the rush that comes with such power, even though somewhere inside, a part of him rebels against such vanity.

And after all that, the scar in his soul remains. Open and gaping. No matter how much he conquers and how far he reaches, it won't heal. It doesn't get better. He is the king of the wasteland, the king of nothing, and he pretends that is enough.

 


End file.
